TY - JOUR
T1 - Biofilm inspired fabrication of functional bacterial cellulose through ex-situ and in-situ approaches
AU - Gilmour, Katie
AU - Aljannat, Mahab
AU - Markwell, Christopher
AU - James, Paul
AU - Scott, Jane
AU - Jiang, Yunhong
AU - Torun, Hamdi
AU - Dade-Robertson, Martyn
AU - Zhang, Meng
N1 - Funding information: This work was supported by the Research England through ‘Expand Excellence England’ scheme, and EPSRC (UK) funded project ‘Principles for a Microbial 3D Printer’ with reference: EP/V050710/1.
PY - 2022/12/22
Y1 - 2022/12/22
N2 - Bacterial cellulose (BC) has been explored for use in a range of applications including tissue engineering and textiles. BC can be produced from waste streams, but sustainable approaches are needed for functionalisation. To this end, BslA, a B. subtilis biofilm protein was produced recombinantly with and without a cellulose binding module (CBM) and the cell free extract was used to treat BC either ex-situ, through drip coating or in-situ, by incorporating during fermentation. The results showed that ex-situ modified BC increased the hydrophobicity and water contact angle reached 120°. In- situ experiments led to a BC film morphological change and mechanical testing demonstrated that addition of BslA with CBM resulted in a stronger, more elastic material. This study presents a nature inspired approach to functionalise BC using a biofilm hydrophobin, and we demonstrate that recombinant proteins could be effective and sustainable molecules for functionalisation of BC materials.
AB - Bacterial cellulose (BC) has been explored for use in a range of applications including tissue engineering and textiles. BC can be produced from waste streams, but sustainable approaches are needed for functionalisation. To this end, BslA, a B. subtilis biofilm protein was produced recombinantly with and without a cellulose binding module (CBM) and the cell free extract was used to treat BC either ex-situ, through drip coating or in-situ, by incorporating during fermentation. The results showed that ex-situ modified BC increased the hydrophobicity and water contact angle reached 120°. In- situ experiments led to a BC film morphological change and mechanical testing demonstrated that addition of BslA with CBM resulted in a stronger, more elastic material. This study presents a nature inspired approach to functionalise BC using a biofilm hydrophobin, and we demonstrate that recombinant proteins could be effective and sustainable molecules for functionalisation of BC materials.
U2 - 10.1016/j.carbpol.2022.120482
DO - 10.1016/j.carbpol.2022.120482
M3 - Article
VL - 304
JO - Carbohydrate Polymers
JF - Carbohydrate Polymers
SN - 0144-8617
M1 - 120482
ER -